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CD player

34K views 83 replies 37 participants last post by  16WhiteColly 
#1 ·
Anyone have a CD player installed in their Colorado or Canyon?
I didn't even know my Canyon didn't have one until I was driving it home. Please don't tell me to load all my music on a jump drive. I'm 70 years old and am doing good just to post this. Tried the jump drive idea on my old Mac and was unsuccessful. Besides, at the speed it was going, it would take weeks to get a select few of my CD's loaded.
So, back to my question. Anyone install an aftermarket CD player?
 
#2 · (Edited)
I too with there were a CD player. Most new vehicles these days will not have one. They are being phased out as you have found.

I have not found anything yet, but I keep checking places like Crutchfield for some sort of add on player like the changers they had years ago. So far, I have not found anything I would use.
I was hoping to find maybe a Bluetooth or USB connectable player.

I have much of my music on a couple Hard Drives, but way more on CDs that would need to be ripped. It isn't a quick endeavor and it seems stupid to have to do that when my 2015 Equinox still has a CD player and I play what I want. I usually only take 6 or less CDs at a time in a case when I want to listen to them, so don't need storing in the truck.

For now, still searching for some sort of player that would be easy to use and not stuffed into the console or some other inaccessible place.
 
#3 ·
#48 ·
It's been bought up before, you could replace the head unit, but personally I'm not a fan of that. Probably easiest and quickest is to just pick up a portable drive and connect it to the Aux In port.

QUOTE]

This idea is probably the easiest alternative in your case. buy an inexpensive USB compatible CD player/external drive and connect it to your USB port
 
#5 ·
Honestly, it would be more work to install a CD player than to just learn how to load the files on a jump drive.

If you want a CD player, you might want to visit your local car stereo shop, Car Toys, Best Buy, etc, and have them show you a few radios with CD players and quote the install for it. With these trucks, the install kit is probably going to be more than the new radio since there is so much tied in to the stock display. You will need:

Dash Kit,
Harness (which includes a lot of things to tie into the factory wiring),
Chime speaker,
Either an iDataLink Maestro or the Radio Options Screen to be able to change the vehicle settings that you can with the stock display,
Antenna adapter,
and various wire connection supplies (good shops solder the connections, cheap shops use butt connectors)
Plus, if you have Nav or Sirius XM and plan to keep those, you will need extra items to be compatible with those features. (Most navigation radios are around $1000-$2000 before install.)
And, if you have the Bose system, that makes it even worse.

It adds up quick, even for a basic install.

You might be better off just enlisting the help of a grandkid or paying someone else to help you load the music on the jump drive if you don't want to learn how to do it.
 
#6 · (Edited)
Honestly, it would be more work to install a CD player than to just learn how to load the files on a jump drive.

It adds up quick, even for a basic install.

You might be better off just enlisting the help of a grandkid or paying someone else to help you load the music on the jump drive if you don't want to learn how to do it.
I do not think he wants a whole new head unit, so the cost, materials, and installation would not be what you outlined.

And it isn't the difficulty to put music on a "jump drive". It is the time it takes to rip, categorize, and transfer from CD to the computer and then the drive. Been there and have done that for a thousand songs already and don't fancy doing more. People act like ripping, downloading, transferring, etc music files just takes "no time at all". Some like doing that. .. some would rather just pop in a CD they already have.

Some of us just Want a CD player. Just like others want lift/leveling kits, HID or LED headlights, and more. We simply want a CD player. Not change out the whole dang sound system.:grin2:
 
#9 ·
I found it interesting that the Silverado has a very similar looking dash/infotainment console, like looks exactly the same but I'm sure size is a little different but they have a slot for CDs and from pictures a few posted here of taking the trim off there, it looks like that slot is mostly molded into our trim, just not fully opened.

Either way, seems like a lot of work to put in an aftermarket player without changing the head unit. CD's are going out just like tape decks did before. People complained about cars not coming equiped with tape players a decade ago, now CD's.

Can either learn how to put music on a drive, use your phone or MP3 device with the aux or Android Auto/Carplay (if 16+) or get a portable CD player like we all used to have and plug that into the aux
 
#13 ·
By the way, it doesn't take THAT long to rip CD's and transfer to a jump drive. What takes long is managing the files if they aren't correctly tagged.

You can rip a CD in about 3-5 minutes depending on how much music is on it. Most rip programs allow you to automatically tag the files with the song information.
Once the files are on your computer, you just drag and drop them onto a jump drive. If you have a half-decent drive, it shouldn't take that long. I was able to transfer 6GB of music in about 10 minutes. Once it is done, you never have to bring cd's with you, or worry about getting them scratched up, etc, and you have access to all of your music from the built in screen.

In my opinion this is much easier than any of the other options I listed above.
And, really, if you are willing to pay for any of the options above, you could probably just pay someone to load your music for you onto your computer, then onto a jump drive.
 
#14 ·
I did a quick search for dash kits for the twins and I was surprised to see that both Metra (95-3016G) and Scosche (GM5215B) make full dash kits to accept a double DIN radio and that they're reasonably priced ($20-30). You still have to add a radio and wire harness to that.
Fortunately for us the AC controls don't seem to be inside the radio so it doesn't require a $300 kit like my old Camaro would have. You do lose pretty much all access to changing settings for the truck. I set those up once and haven't touched them since but it would still make me nervous to remove the stock headunit.
 
#15 ·
It really sucks that these trucks did not have an available CD player. Nowadays, every yard sale and flea market has endless CDs for a buck or less.
 
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#16 ·
Just use Music Bee (free without strings) and drop your Cd in, and hit record. Or Media Monkey Gold (paid, not expensive) and it is even easier. From there, put your drive in, and drag-drop or "send to". Youtube videos and other tutorials are all over the place.

The mechanical drive is almost dead. Let it die. If we can get to a purely digital format technology, there's a chance we can get beyond-CD sound quality to be a standard. 24bit / 96kHz could be the norm, over time. You can buy a 32 to 64 GB USB 3.0 / 3.1 drive for about $10-30. Of course having a computer with storage is helpful as well, since you need a "home base" for it. But that's not expensive, either.

American International also makes a dash kit for a Cd player in the 2015+, just beware that there's tons of hidden costs to get all the hidden menus from the stock head unit to an aftermarket one, in the form of aftermarket workaround solutions. That, or you just lose those. I'm rebuilding the whole system myself, but I'm going to try to keep the stock head unit, provided it passes my tests for sound quality (hopefully testing this week.) The acoustics of the truck have already been measured by myself and they do NOT make the grade, both to my ears and to my mic and software. So right there, the system needs work.
 
#17 ·
Dash Kit:
Metra 95-3016G or 99-3016G (the 99- includes a pocket if you are installing a single DIN unit) The amazon listing has the wrong picture, but that is the correct kit.
or
Scosche GM5215B
or
American Internation GMK-329BM

Price Range - $17 - $40

Wiring Harness:
PAC RP5-GM51 - Retain steering wheel controls, includes external chime speaker, but lose ability to control vehicle customization options like climate control, welcome lighting, etc.

Price - $100ish

or

iDataLink Maestro plus ADS-HRN-RR-GM3 - Retains steering wheel controls, includes external chime speaker, allows vehicle customization menus, adds OBD sensor reading, but requires specific "iDataLink" compatible radios (Pioneer, JVC, Kenwood, Alpine).

Price - $150ish

or

Metra GMOS-MOST-01 plus AX-LCD plus ASWC-1 - Retain steering wheel controls, includes external chime speaker, only option to retain factory Bose Amp, retain vehicle customization options, but need to mount the LCD somewhere.

Price - $225 + $70 + $50 = almost $350


There may be other options I don't know about, but this is what I was able to find.

Also, don't forget that with most of the aftermarket radios, you will need to cut some of the plastic on the inside of the dash to make room for the unit. This is a permanent modification.
If you want some of the features that the Aftermarket radios provide, this may be worth it to you, but if all you are looking for is to add a CD player, it might not be worth it.
 
#84 ·
And cassettes too! Even 33 1/3 and 45’s. Installed an 8 track tape player in my first car, a 1965 Falcon. Shortly after, I bought the adapter to play the new cassette tapes thru the same 8 track player. High tech stuff, man.
 
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#21 · (Edited)
Something like this from VR3 would fit the ticket if still available and more like what I think the OP is looking for. It even has both RCA and USB connectivity, a remote control and is only 7" X 7"X 2".

Also could be used in and of itself. Plays CD-MA, MP3, and more.

Would fit in several interior locations.
 
#23 ·
That was discontinued a while ago, and even still, this is a standalone radio. This needs the items I posted in post #17 to work.

"RCA Connectivity" is to install an aftermarket Amplifier.
"USB Connectivity" is the same damn jump drive thingamajigger that you guys are so afraid of.
There are no outputs to plug this into the OEM system.

Let's say you want to just install this somewhere else and leave the in dash OEM display. Not only would you need to find a place to put it, you would need to provide ground, 12v and ACC power, then to get any sound out of it, you would need to wire this to speakers. That means either wiring direct to the OEM speakers (not recommended since it could interfere and back-power the OEM unit), or to separate speakers else where in the car.

All single DIN cd players are 7 x 7 x 2 or so dimensions, it is a DIN standard size. ANY single DIN cd player would fit the same as the one you posted. There are a LOT of options there, but they all have the same requirements for install.
 
#31 · (Edited)
Surprised nobody has brought up how much better CD's sound than MP3's. Yeah, I'm 59, but I'm also the biggest nerd you'll ever meet and was ripping MP3's back in the days when Winamp was "whipping the llama's ass". I know, there are "lossless" formats and FLAC and I haven't checked to see what formats the stock headunit supports, but when I want to jam out to an old Bad Company album, nothing sounds as good to me as a CD. I know mp3's carry all the frequencies the human ear can hear, but I think it's the subsonics that make a CD rock. And don't even get me started on how bad streaming Pandora sounds. Yuck.

Now that I've opened that can of worms, carry on. :p
 
#33 ·
^ ^ ^

See. .. another example of deriding what the OP wishes to do which is play CDs.

So much for. .:
- - (which is completely fine, do whatever you want to do.) - :rofl

Not *selling* any ideas . . . . r-r-right.

And. . . more TMI.
Okay. . . wait for it - - - -
 
#36 ·
CD might sound better because of the file type and size. MP3 is a compression algorithm ans some has to be sacrifice for the sake of storage. Some MP3s of the range over 6 MB in size sounds decent; about 3 MB is the lowest that I will go.

You want real sound? Try a turntable with a nice record. Music is analog, not digital and CD sounds like crap compared to a vinyl record; the problem is practicality. Another crap sounding music can be heard from Sat Radio. Is so compressed that is awful.

Try Ogg Vorbis files.... I wonder if is compatible with the system.
 
#40 ·
Before I copied my music (previously burnt CDs to iTunes) from iTunes to the thumb drives, I checked the Intellilink Manual and found the acceptable formats, as shown below. Rightly or wrongly I ended up using the AIFF format, which apparently uses more memory but results in a closer to CD-quality sound. It seems OK after several months of use. Understanding that despite being a really quiet cab, it's still not my living room, but it's not too bad :eek:)
The following restrictions apply
for the data stored on a USB
MP3 player or USB device:
‐ Maximum folder structure
depth: 11 levels.
‐ Applicable audio extensions
are mp3, wma, aac, m4a,
and aif.
‐ WMA and Apple lossless files
are not supported.
‐ Supported file systems are
FAT32 and NTFS.
 
#38 ·
The local CarFi shop says they can put a small CD player in my console (the center cubby where USB port is). This is all I really want. They said they could even do a changer if I wanted. When I do get this done I will post a photo.
Thanks for all the interest everyone has shown.
 
#39 ·
Awesome!



Awesome! That's great news, Condition One! Hope it works well and sounds even better. And enjoy your new truck too!
 
#43 · (Edited)
So, regarding a CD Player in the Canyon/Colorado, I found this schematic in the Canyon Colorado Electrical Builders Manual on P. 66.

It shows the connections to the radio for a "Media Disc Player".

So. .. was a CD Player a potential option originally? Are the connections still there if the right hardware can be found?

Picture below.
 
#44 ·
There were pre-production pictures of the interior that had the CD player under the stereo. I bet that spot is empty now. For anyone who has taken the dash apart, any connectors back there? Wondering if they designed it out, or if the idea made it far enough so there is still a spot where it could have been. Would make adding something a lot easier; perhaps even a swap from the 1500.
 
#45 ·
Just a thought, has anyone checked with the Aussies to see if their trucks came with CD players?
 
#46 ·
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#47 ·
I wonder wha things that were "normal" will be phased out when I'm 70.

I kind of saw the tape phased out, but not really....not on a car I owned, They have all had CD's but I grew up with USB's as well.


Exiting times :nerd:
 
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